Be a Better Leader in 2018 by Doing These 3 Things

&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;Are you getting the most you can from your employees&quest;&NewLine;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;&Tab;

Take a look at some of the most successful leaders of large brands -- the Steve Jobs and Jeff Bezos -- and you will notice one similarity&colon; They lead and inspire through their influence&period; It's not necessarily what you do or what you say that makes your employees and team members respect you and trust your vision -- it's who you are&period;

The best leaders have an unparalleled work ethic and the determition to overcome any obstacle in their way&comma; while also understanding they need to interact and communicate with their team like human beings&period; You can't be a good leader without authentic and genuine human interaction&period;

Here are three things to do in order to become a better leader this year&period;

1&period; Listen more&period;

There are very few things more stressful and overwhelming than starting a business&period; The minute you decide to make the leap and become an entrepreneur&comma; you immediately wear several hats and take on countless responsibilities&period;

Many entrepreneurs assume the "boss" role and become dictators&comma; letting their title cloud their better judgment&period; Instead&comma; communicate just like you would in a normal conversation&period; Speak&comma; but more importantly&comma; listen&period;

Listen outside of your own conversations as well&period; When you constantly have your ears open&comma; you will pick up on things that can be improved upon within your company that will not only make your team members happier and more productive&comma; but also have a positive impact on your bottom line&period;

2&period; Be straightforward&period;

Have you ever had a boss in the past that was very unpredictable&quest; Meaning&comma; you never knew what his or her reaction would be if you went to them with a question or suggestion&quest; If you're not straightforward 100 percent of the time&comma; your team members will do everything they can to avoid communicating with you&period;

If this disconnect occurs&comma; you will drastically water down your influence&period; A strong leader is approachable at all times and straightforward&period;

One of the simplest solutions is to always leave emotions&comma; personal issues and distractions at the door&period; When you walk into work&comma; or start your day from a remote location&comma; those "other" things can't come along&period; Check them at the door until your day is over&period;

Life happens&comma; and we all deal with things outside of our professional lives&comma; but it's how we handle those other things that impact the type of leaders we become&period; Consistency is key when it comes to communication -- your team needs to know they can come to you at any time or discuss any topic -- and that trust is built by being straightforward&period;